Recovered Schmitt scores 4 TDs to give Jaguars 4th win
WEEKLY BLOG: 9/30/22
Trailing on the road at Sunrise Mountain by a 21-9 score at the half, the Boulder Creek Jaguars went to their strengths, the run game and their play in the trenches. Those were two areas BCHS excelled in and it showed as it scored 29 unanswered points to score a 38-21 victory.
Running back Sinjin Smith, who missed the Jaguars' previous game while he was recovering from scarlet fever, returned to practice on Tuesday and rushed for 195 yards while scoring four touchdowns. Junior quarterback Rowan McKenzie got into a groove, completing seven straight passes in the second half, and the Jaguar defense rose to the occasion, stuffing SMHS on each of its last five possessions.
Sunrise Mountain (3-2) had the upper hand in the first half and it began on its initial play from scrimmage. De'Mykal Anderson took the direct snap, got around the edge, and tightroped the sideline for a 62-yard gain to the 14-yard line. Three plays later, the trickery continued with senior receiver Micah Johnson taking the handoff on an end around. Instead of trying to gain yardage on the other side, he stopped and passed to an open Tristan Henss in the end zone. The junior tight end caught it for an early 7-0 lead.
The next time the Mustangs had the ball, Anderson let it fly with a deep pass that traveled nearly 50 yards in the air. Johnson had a step on his defender, hauled it in, and went the rest of the way for an 84-yard touchdown. A successful two-point conversion boosted the lead to 15.
Bolstered by the two big plays, Sunrise Mountain had 160 yards of offense in the first quarter.
Boulder Creek had a drive stall in the second quarter at its own 46-yard line. Evan Reed came in to punt and the Jaguars downed the ball at the 1. With little room to run, defensive lineman Caleb Wikoff tackled the running back in the end zone for a safety.
The Jaguars got the ball back with just over two minutes remaining in the half. Finally, the offense that came into the night averaging 37 points per game was able to deliver. A pass from McKenzie to Andrew McKenzie (no relation) resulted in a 27-yard gain. Schmitt powered it up the middle from two yards out to pull BCHS closer.
Sunrise Mountain was at its own 38-yard line with less than a minute to go before the intermission. It wasn't the deep ball this time, though. Johnson took a handoff, hit the hole and used his speed to outrun the defense for a 62-yard touchdown and a 21-9 advantage.
The halftime numbers were close in terms of yardage, 219-210 in favor of the Jaguars. The difference was the three big plays for the Mustangs that resulted in 208 of those 210 yards.
The break is a time for the fans to settle in and enjoy a halftime show from the cheer line, pom line, and the band (SMHS has a Haka show). For the coaches and the players, it's a time for the offensive coaches and defensive coaches to meet with their team and make adjustments. Boulder Creek did just that.
"We knew we had a really good running game," Boulder Creek head coach Tony Casarella said. "We wanted to compliment it with some RPO's, and we hit some big plays as well."
Sunrise Mountain opened the second half with an onside kick attempt. Boulder Creek recovered it and started with a short field at the Mustang 48. While it was the start of the momentum change, which carried through the rest of the game, it's a strategy that the Mustangs have used often this year.
"We onside kick all the time," Sunrise Mountain head coach Steve Decker said. "That's what we do. We've been giving up some big plays on kickoffs."
McKenzie completed a 33-yard pass to Peyton Buschlen to get close. From inside the 10-yard line, Schmitt bounced off a defender and took it in for a touchdown.
Schmitt was getting stronger as the game went on. After rushing for 69 yards in the first half, he went over the 100-yard mark with a 42-yard run to set up another scoring run.
Following a punt, Boulder Creek (4-1) got a gift 30 yards as the Mustangs were hit with a pair of dead ball personal foul penalties. That allowed the Jaguars to start at the SMHS 44-yard line. Facing a fourth-and-three from the 26-yard line, Rowan McKenzie dropped back to pass, rolled out, and then scrambled his way to the right sideline for a touchdown.
"Another example of when he scrambles and makes something happen," Casarella said. "That's the kind of quarterback he is. He's a dual-threat QB and he can run the ball."
Boulder Creek scored touchdowns on each of its first four possessions to begin the second half. The final points on the scoreboard came via a flea flicker. Rowan McKenzie got the ball lateraled back to him and fired downfield, where Schmitt was wide open.
"We just installed it," McKenzie said. "I didn't get to run it at all this week. I knew in the huddle it was going to work."
McKenzie finished the night 16-of-27 for 230 yards. The flow of the game seemed to keep the rhythm going for him.
"The first half was very slow," McKenzie said. "Penalties killed us. Sinjin and our O-line. We just started to beat them up."
BCHS was penalized six times for 60 yards in the first half, but had only three penalties the rest of the night.
In the second half, Sunrise Mountain had just one first down and was outgained 263-5.
"They're just a very physical football team," Decker said. "We just couldn't hang."
Schmitt finished with a career-high 195 yards on 22 carries. He credited his blockers for doing the dirty work to make him look good.
"Good holes were being opened up by my line," Schmitt said. "We were just killing them up front."
On the defensive line, Dax Monestime had two of the Jaguars' three sacks in the game.
Both teams have their bye week upcoming and won't play again until Oct. 14, when region play begins.
Sunrise Mountain, which has used multiple quarterbacks in each game this year, will have a much different look when it plays at Cactus (2-3). The team has four transfers that are now eligible after sitting the first five games. Two of them are quarterbacks - Austin Glimpse and Vanden Dugger. Glimpse, a senior, came from Centennial last January. Dugger is a sophomore that played on Saguaro's freshman team in 2021. Both have been practicing with the team. Decker said he has not reached a decision on a starter yet. The team will have a normal week and practice four days from Monday to Thursday.
The Mustangs came into Friday night averaging seven pass attempts per game and were pretty much on that number (3-of-8 for 101 yards with two different quarterbacks, plus Johnson, attempting passes).
"We've got to win up front," Decker said. "It's been the same way for 100 years with football. If you get your tail kicked on the offensive and defensive lines, you're going to have a hard time winning the game."
Casarella was pleased with his offense, which had a season-high 482 yards.
"We're still perfecting our running game," Casarella said. "We are a ball-possession team. That's when we thrive. We want to RPO off of that."
The Jaguars, who resume at home in Anthem against Mountain Ridge (2-2), will be working on special teams. The coaches gave the players Saturday off and will include three extra film days as part of practice.
While the schedule is a difficult one with Centennial, Perry, O'Connor, and Liberty on the horizon, a fully-healthy Schmitt combined with a passing game that utilizes both the backs and the receivers, can be a scary one as well. And if the Jaguars can get the lead in those games, they have the offense that makes it tough to come back on. Boulder Creek huddles every play and can be deliberate, looking for that six to seven minute drive.
"It feels really good," Schmitt said about being 4-1. "We've got something going here. We can have a good season."
First Quarter:
SM - Tristan Henss 11 yard pass from Micah Johnson (Braden Harvey kick), 10:14
SM - Johnson 84 yard pass from De'Mykal Anderson (Rex Underhill run), 8:04
Second Quarter:
BC - Safety. Caleb Wikoff tackled running back in end zone, 6:13
BC - Sinjin Schmitt 2 yard run (Keegan Gaffney kick), 0:52
SM - Johnson 62 yard run (pass failed), 0:32
Third Quarter:
BC - Schmitt 7 yard run (Gaffney kick), 10:47
BC - Schmitt 6 yard run (Schmitt run), 4:33
Fourth Quarter:
BC - Rowan McKenzie 26 yard run (Gaffney kick), 11:50
BC - Schmitt 41 yard pass from McKenzie (Gaffney kick), 7:30
